Williams building permits

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Department contacts, adopted codes, permit types, fees, and gotchas for Williams, Arizona.

Last verified 2026-07-07 · Source · Embed this page’s badge · Version history

Building department

Address: 113 South 1st Street, Williams, AZ 86046-2549
Phone: 928-635-4451 ext. 205
Email: tmartinez@williamsaz.gov
Office hours: Phone 928-635-4451, fax 928-635-4495. Chief Building Inspector / Building Official: Tim Martinez (928-295-5478, tmartinez@williamsaz.gov) handles building permit review and issuance; Building Official Raul Hatch (928-635-4451 / 928-295-5478, rhatch@williamsaz.gov) is listed as the signing official on the Fence and Demolition permit application forms — the department appears to operate with more than one Building Official-titled staff member across different permit forms as of 2025. Applications are submitted in person or by mail using the City's paper Building Permit Application (no online portal was found); permits are picked up and fees paid at the City Hall front desk. Two sets of construction documents/plans required for submittal.
Website: Official site

Inspection guide

See how inspections work in Williams — sequence, scheduling & re-inspection fees.

Codes adopted

Arizona has no statewide building code for non-state buildings; codes are adopted locally. According to the International Code Council, codes are adopted locally in Arizona and are predominantly the I-codes, with different cities and counties choosing their own editions and local amendments. The Arizona State Fire Code (adopting the 2018 IFC) applies only to state and county buildings, public and private schools, and non-residential occupancies in areas without a locally adopted fire code — it does not establish a statewide residential or commercial building code floor. Each city and county adopts its own code editions independently, resulting in different I-Code years and amendment sets across jurisdictions. There is no state-mandated minimum edition; enforcement is entirely local. Always confirm the adopted edition and any local amendments with the specific jurisdiction before submitting plans.

Arizona has NO statewide mandatory building code floor for general construction — code adoption is a per-city/county authority under state enabling statutes (A.R.S. Title 9). The City of Williams runs its own independent Building Department and adopts and administers its own construction codes; it does not defer building permitting to Coconino County. Source: City of Williams Building Department page (williamsaz.gov/departments_and_services/building_department); City of Williams Code of Ordinances Title 7, Chapter 7-1.
The City's currently codified adoption (Ordinance No. 956 / referenced in the code index as 'Ordinance No. 1007', adopted 10-27-2016, effective 1-1-2017) sets the 2015 editions of the International Building Code (IBC), International Residential Code (IRC), International Mechanical Code (IMC), International Plumbing Code (IPC), International Fire Code (IFC), International Fuel Gas Code (IFGC), International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC), and International Existing Building Code (IEBC), plus the 2014 National Electrical Code (NEC), each with City of Williams amendments layered on by article (e.g., Art. 1.02 amends the IBC, Art. 1.12 amends the IRC, etc.). Source: City of Williams Ordinance No. 956 (PDF, 'Adopted Building Codes Ordinance and Amendments'), Title 7, Chapter 7-1.
IMPORTANT CODE-CYCLE UPDATE FOUND: a separate, more recent 'Building and Design Criteria Submittal Requirements' document published directly on the City's Building Department page lists the DESIGN CODES as the 2024 editions of the IBC, IRC, IMC, IPC, IFC, IFGC, IPMC, and IEBC, plus the 2023 NEC and the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines — this is a full code-cycle jump from the 2015/2014 cycle codified in Ordinance No. 956/1007. No corresponding new numbered ordinance repealing/replacing Ordinance No. 956 was found published in the American Legal Publishing code library or via Wayback Machine as of July 2026, but the City's own current-facing submittal-requirements document (undated but filename '2024 Design Criteria.pdf', hosted directly under the Building Department page alongside a 2024-cycle Solar Policy and 2025-dated fillable permit application forms) is the most current, most directly-published statement of which code edition the City is actually enforcing for new submittals as of this writing. Both the 2015-cycle codified ordinance and the 2024-cycle submittal-requirements sheet are cited throughout this record; where they conflict, the 2024 Design Criteria document is treated as controlling for current practice, with the codified Ordinance No. 956 amendments (administrative sections, fee/refund cross-references, permit expiration rules) still applicable since no repeal was found. Source: City of Williams 'Building and Design Criteria Submittal Requirements' (2024 Design Criteria.pdf); City of Williams Ordinance No. 956; Williams, AZ Code of Ordinances current through 2025 S-7 supplement (no Title 7 building-code ordinance number newer than 956/1007 appears in the codified index).
Chief Building Inspector / Building Official authority (Ordinance No. 956, Section 103.1 amendments to IBC/IRC/IMC/IPC/IEBC): the Department of Building Safety is created, headed by the Chief Building Inspector, and the terms 'Chief Building Inspector' and 'Building Official' are treated as one and the same throughout the adopted codes. Source: City of Williams Ordinance No. 956.
All buildings constructed or placed within city limits must meet the required Uniform Building Code (as locally adopted), except mobile homes and modular homes when specifically allowed by the Zoning Code. Source: Williams, AZ Code of Ordinances § 158.126 Building Permit and Plot Plan Required (Prior Code § 12-7.02; Ord. 747, passed 1995).
Building permit and plot-plan application procedure is governed by Code of Ordinances Chapter 154 (Development Procedures), § 154.018 Plot Plan and Building Permit: a plot plan and required fees are submitted to the City Planner; work within the Main Street District (including the Historic Preservation District) is forwarded to the Main Street Design Committee for review; each reviewing city department reviews plot plan applications on Monday and/or Tuesday of each week, ensuring staff review within six working days; the applicant then meets with the Chief Building Official, makes final changes, and submits four copies of the approved plot plan; a memorandum of agreement for public improvements (where applicable) must be signed before permit issuance; the applicant then submits a Building Permit Application and two sets of building plans to the Chief Building Official, which are reviewed by city staff or a referred architecture/engineering consultant, with the permit issued upon approval and fee payment. Source: Williams, AZ Code of Ordinances § 154.018 Plot Plan and Building Permit.
Commercial plans (new construction/alterations of 3,000 sq ft or more, major electrical/mechanical/plumbing improvements or replacements, housing of more than 4 units, or public improvements) must be sealed by a qualified Arizona-licensed architect and/or engineer per A.R.S. § 32-144; motels and restaurants additionally require a copy of approval-to-construct from the Coconino County Health Department (928-679-7120) before a City permit is issued. Source: City of Williams 'Procedure to Obtain Building Permit'.
Residential single-family detached structures are exempt from the Arizona Design Professional (architect/engineer stamp) requirement under A.R.S. § 32-121 et seq. unless circumstances dictate otherwise; duplexes/triplexes under 3,000 sq ft, two stories, or 20 total occupant load, with a single owner, may also be designed by a non-registrant. Sub-assemblies (roof trusses, manufactured floor beams) with imposed loading indicated may be submitted without a design-professional stamp. Retaining walls with unbalanced loading exceeding 4 feet must be designed by an Arizona-certified/registered design professional. Source: City of Williams Ordinance No. 956, IBC § 107.1 / IRC § R106.1.1 amendments.
Manufactured homes and mobile homes are permitted under Arizona's statewide Office of Manufactured Housing licensing/installation-permit structure (Arizona Department of Housing) for factory-built construction standards, layered with City of Williams local zoning/site/plot-plan compliance review — the City's own Zoning Code (§ 158.126) explicitly carves mobile homes and modular homes out of the standard Uniform Building Code requirement 'when specifically allowed by this chapter,' i.e., subject to zoning-specific provisions rather than the general IBC/IRC track. Source: Williams, AZ Code of Ordinances § 158.126; Arizona Department of Housing, Office of Manufactured Housing, Installation Permits page.

Permit types & fees

New residential construction activity

New privately-owned residential construction only

Housing units authorized by building permits for new privately-owned residential construction — this is not total permit volume (no commercial permits or remodels).

Latest month (2026-05)

0units

0 buildings · $0 valuation

Trailing 12 months

12units

12 of 12 months reported · #65 in Arizona coverage by units

Year to date (2026 YTD through 2026-05)

7units

7 buildings · $3.1M valuation

5 month(s) reported to Census

Full year 2025

12units

12 buildings · $4.5M valuation

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey (BPS), 2026-05 vintage. Census survey data — separate from the permit-requirements verification above. All Arizona building activity

Tips & gotchas

Arizona has no statewide mandatory building code — the City of Williams independently adopts and amends its own construction codes and runs its own Building Department; it does not defer to Coconino County for permitting within city limits (except for septic/private sewage systems and, for motels/restaurants, Health Department approval-to-construct).
A genuine code-cycle discrepancy exists and is disclosed throughout this record: Ordinance No. 956 (adopted 10-27-2016, effective 1-1-2017) codifies the 2015 ICC family and 2014 NEC, but the City's own current 'Building and Design Criteria Submittal Requirements' sheet lists the 2024 ICC family and 2023 NEC as the design codes for current submittals, and the design-load figures differ slightly between the two documents (e.g., ground snow load 50 PSF/wind 115 MPH per the older ordinance table vs. 60 PSF/105 MPH per the current sheet). No intervening ordinance bridging this gap was found published — this record cites both and treats the newer sheet as controlling for current design criteria while Ordinance No. 956's administrative/fee/expiration provisions remain in force absent a located repeal.
The City of Williams directly publishes a '15 working days' average plan-review-and-permit turnaround — a real, city-specific figure used for the two full plan-review permit types (Residential Building and Residential Remodel/Addition) in this record. Ordinance No. 956 separately designates plumbing, mechanical, electrical, re-roofing, and fences as 'fixed fee permits' with a shorter 180-day (not 365-day) VALIDITY period, but no distinct faster REVIEW-turnaround figure was found published for these fixed-fee categories — hence the honest reviewTimelineDays: null / reviewTimelineNote treatment for those four permit types in this record.
The Fence Permit ($37.95, printed on the application form) and the Public Works/Engineering Excavation permit (fully itemized per-unit fee schedule) are the ONLY two permit types in this record with complete, verifiable, published dollar-figure fees. Every other permit type (Building, Remodel, Electrical, Plumbing, Mechanical, Roofing, Solar, Demolition) defers to an unpublished 'fee schedule as established by resolution of the City Council' per Ordinance No. 956 — only the $500/$100 non-refundable application deposits are published for those categories.
Building Official contact information is genuinely split across City documents: Tim Martinez (928-295-5478, tmartinez@williamsaz.gov) is listed as Building Official on the Building Permit Application and the Public Works/Engineering Permit form, while Raul Hatch (928-635-4451/928-295-5478, rhatch@williamsaz.gov) is listed as Building Official on the Fence Permit and Demolition Permit applications — both names/emails are reported here as found on the respective official forms rather than reconciled to a single name, since no single current org-chart page was found to resolve which individual currently holds the title.
Commercial plans for buildings 3,000 sq ft or more, more than 4 housing units, major electrical/mechanical/plumbing improvements, or public improvements must be sealed by an Arizona-licensed design professional (A.R.S. § 32-144); motels and restaurants additionally require Coconino County Health Department approval-to-construct (928-679-7120) before a City permit issues.
Residential single-family detached structures are exempt from the Arizona Design Professional stamp requirement (A.R.S. § 32-121 et seq.) absent unusual circumstances — duplex/triplex under 3,000 sq ft, 2 stories, 20 occupant load, single owner may also skip the stamp requirement.
Williams' climate/design criteria are meaningfully more severe than lower-desert Arizona cities: 60 PSF ground snow load, 105 MPH wind, Seismic Design Category C, 30-inch frost line, 4°F winter design temperature, and a mandatory ice barrier — reflecting the city's roughly 6,750-foot elevation on the Colorado Plateau/Kaibab National Forest, a stark contrast to Valley-of-the-Sun jurisdictions like Buckeye (34°F winter design temp, no ground snow load).
LP-gas (propane) is broadly DISALLOWED as a fuel source citywide except in three narrow scenarios (natural gas service over 1,000 feet away; temporary construction heat; small-volume exterior recreational use) — this is a significant, non-obvious local amendment that could surprise a contractor accustomed to propane-friendly rural Arizona jurisdictions.
The City's Solar Policy explicitly states Williams does NOT offer a net-metering/billing-credit program, and routes solar plan review through APS (the City's contracted electric-system operator) before the City's own Building Department processes the permit — both facts are atypical enough to flag for any prospective solar customer.
Work within the Main Street District, including the Historic Preservation District (relevant to Williams' well-known historic Route 66 downtown), requires additional review/approval from the Main Street Design Committee/Historic Commission before permitting, layered on top of standard Building Department review.
Properties within the Wildland Urban Interface Zone (a meaningful share of Williams given its Kaibab National Forest surroundings) must submit a Defensible Space/Vegetation Management Plan as part of the standard residential submittal packet — this is not a universal Arizona requirement and reflects Williams' distinct wildfire-exposure context relative to desert-valley cities.
Fixed-fee permits (plumbing, mechanical, electrical, re-roofing, fences) are valid for a maximum of 180 days under Ordinance No. 956, while new construction/remodel/addition building permits are valid 365 days with one full-length extension available (and a further 180-day extension at half the permit fee) — plan trade-specific permit timing accordingly.
No dedicated Manufactured/Mobile Home permit record was built as a distinct permit type in this file: Williams' own Zoning Code (§ 158.126) carves mobile homes and modular homes out of the standard Uniform Building Code requirement 'when specifically allowed by this chapter,' meaning such placements are governed by Arizona's statewide Office of Manufactured Housing licensing/installation-permit system plus City zoning/site-plan review rather than the standard IBC/IRC building-permit track — treat this as a distinct process to confirm directly with the Planning & Zoning Department (113 S. 1st St.) rather than assuming the standard residential-building-permit path applies.